


Drained

by FireWolf1



Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Beast Wars
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Childhood Friends, Depthcharge isn't that much of an asshole in the first half, Eventual Sex, Eventual Smut, F/M, Falling In Love, Friends to Lovers, He still becomes an asshole, Love Confessions, Prequel, Sad Ending, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Torture, Tragic Romance, Violence, he's still hot though
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-21
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:48:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24843316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireWolf1/pseuds/FireWolf1
Summary: Even two empty souls can heal each other's wounds.Depthcharge acts a comforting shoulder for his closest friend, partner and childhood crush, whilst he battles his own demons and begins to slowly lose himself to them. One of those demons being Protoform X.
Relationships: Blackarachnia/Silverbolt, Depthcharge/Original Character(s), Depthcharge/Original Female Character(s), Dinobot/Rattrap, Rampage/Transmutate
Kudos: 7





	1. Prologue

A small child sat at the bottom of the stairs, alone and still. Light rain poured onto the sparkling, who remained silent, and she tightened her arms around herself into a ball. A crack of lightning lit up the sky, following closely by thunder, and the small femme trembled with both fear and the chill that ran up her back.

It was a sad sight, a vulnerable child with no creator to come and help her get dry and warm. She had merely been left in the rain, like a bag of litter. Her creators had long gone after leaving her here. She hadn't known exactly why or how long they would be but the child hadn't argued when they told her to sit here.

A mech, built tall and strong, came out of the building that was connected to the staircase. He had noticed the small ball highlighted by the tower's lights and had come out to investigate. Warily, he began to make his way down the staircase, his optics or his processor hadn't quite figured out what exactly sat huddled at the bottom of the stairs. 

Shining his torch onto the small entity and holding a hand over his optics to look better, the mech quickly realised what sat at the bottom of the staircase. He hurried forward and down the stairs. Calmly, he placed a gentle servo on the child who had remained motionless until he touched her.

Her optics snapped up, bright with gold and flecks of yellow, and the mech was surprised at how beautiful they were. He hushed her calmly, giving her a light hug, and told her, "I'm the Captain here. You okay, kiddo?"

The child dropped her gaze and turned her head away from him. The mech frowned at that, unsure exactly what to think of her behaviour. She seemed awfully distant and when he saw her optics, it seemed as if there had been nothing there - no emotion or feeling. Her lack of reply made him concerned for her and so he took her inside, where the warmth happily greeted her.


	2. Recruit

"Yo Depthcharge"

Depthcharge didn't hear him. The blue mech had his red optics elsewhere. His interest was set on the two young bots, a mech and a femme, that were playing in the street below, just outside the school grounds. A fence parted them from the military school as they laughed and chased each other. They had been playing with a ball only moments ago.

Depthcharge brought his servo up to lean his helm on it, slouching ever so slightly on the desk, as he watched them chase each other. His processor swarmed with thoughts of an easier life when he had once been a sparkling, not having to worry about anything. The fence was a barrier now. There was no going back.

But, it wasn't like he didn't enjoy military school. His dream had always been to be part of it in some way.

A jab of something in his side made Depthcharge's gaze snap over to the mech beside him, otherwise known as Ironreef. He was slightly shorter than Depthcharge, slimmer too, and coloured in silver and light blue. His optics were a proud colour of teal, swirls of greens and blues if you looked close enough. He grinned at Depthcharge, and whispered, "You alright there, man? You seemed completely out of it"

When Depthcharge had first come to this school, he had trouble making friends. He could be rather stubborn and hotheaded at times which made him snappy. This meant that bots didn't talk to him and kept their distance. Depthcharge had created his own bubble.

Ironreef had been the mech to talk to Depthcharge, chat with him endlessly and crack terrible jokes every now and again. At the time, Depthcharge had hated it and turned a cold shoulder on the mech, finding him annoying. Now, they were close friends - best friends even. Ironreef proved to be a bright beam in the dark, an open soul who enjoyed creating happiness. It was actually uplifting. Ironreef had fought his way through that bubble and he had managed to make his way through - along with the rest of his friends.

Depthcharge whispered back harshly to him, turning away from the bot to see that the kids in the street had disappeared, "You better shut up before the coach notices us"

In military school, the coaches weren't exactly the nicest, not that it was their fault. Their current coach was currently talking about positioning and formation, which Depthcharge had quickly grown bored of. The teachers were told to act extremely strict to the students and Depthcharge didn't blame them or the system that was there. If they were going to be soldiers of some kind, they'd have to be tough and-

"You know what I'm like Depthcharge, I don't give a frag," Ironreef said, jabbing a digit into his chassis. His stupid grin still on his dumb face as he whispered a bit louder than usual. 

"And you'll get us both into trouble if you keep talking," Depthcharge snapped quietly, not facing his friend to lower any suspicion. The femme in front of him span around in her desk to give the both of them a hard, chilly look as if she was mentally telling them both to "shut up". Depthcharge nearly groaned with annoyance as his friend spoke again.

"Look, fishboy -," Depthcharge hated when he called him that, "- I'm just trying to get you to pay attention to the class. You're too busy daydreaming about whatever. It's gonna get you into trouble, you hear me?" Ironreef snickered. Depthcharge was certain the mech still had a grin on his face. He started to continue, "Well I heard a rumour from these two guys that-"

"Ironreef! Depthcharge! Are you two done causing a commotion in class? Or do I need to have you two outside running laps?" the instructor questioning in her loud, strict voice. The mechs looked over to the coach as she walked over, her face stern and would have been completely blank if not for her narrowed optics. She stood between the two of them, glaring at them both and waiting for an answer.

"Yes. We're sorry. We won't do it again," Depthcharge instantly answered with a firm voice once her cold stare flickered to him. Her optics had shook him to the core, as most of the coaches and drill sergeants did here. She looked between the two of them before turning on her heel and started to head back to the front of the room. It was then Depthcharge realised that the rest of the students had turned in their seats to watch them. He placed his helm back in his servo, acting as if hadn't bothered him when he was actually dying inside from embarrassment.

It would have gone well if Ironreef remained quiet. His voice sprang from the silence and he spoke, "Actually, ma'am, I wanted to ask something"

Two femmes from the other side of the class giggled, obviously liking his class clown foolery. This wasn't the first time that Ironreef had got into trouble, got them both into trouble, and it probably wouldn't be the last. The giggles quickly died when the coach turned back to face them, her glare even worse than before. It disappeared though and she asked coolly, "What would you like to ask, Ironreef?"

"I heard that we were having a new recruit. Is that right?" he questioning casually as if it was nothing. Depthcharge looked at him in the corner of his red optics. Was that what Ironreef wanted to tell him? It's not often new kids joined, mostly due to the strict rules and tense atmosphere. More kids left than they joined.

All the kids had gone silent and stared at her, waiting for an answer as if it was the biggest surprise of their lifetime. The instructor sighed, blinking her blue optics, before asking with a tired voice, "How did you hear about this?"

Ironreef shrugged, leaning back in his chair, "Word gets around"

"Whatever you've heard about a new recruit," she said, staring at him as if she was debating whether or not to tell them. Depthcharge glanced from Ironreef to her, anxiety building up. She continued, "is right"

The silence was broken; the kids broke out into whispers and mumbles, already gossiping about this. Depthcharge felt his servos coil into fists and he looked over to Ironreef, who winked at him. He didn't know what to think or feel about this. It was strange to think about. It wasn't often a bot joined even though they had already started the training. But it wasn't rare.

Depthcharge asked before he even thought about it, "When will we be seeing them?"

"Yeah. When?"

"Who are they?"

"What's their name? Are they coming soon?"

Questions started coming from everyone; Depthcharge instantly regretted even asking in the first place. The instructor looked at each kid who blurted out a question over and over again. She frowned at them all, immediately getting annoyed, before shouting, "Quiet! She'll be coming later today"

She. Today. But they had no idea what she was called and when exactly she would get here. If Depthcharge had to guess, it would most likely be their last period to prevent her from being overwhelmed by the other students. They most likely will have questions. I mean, he was rather curious too but he'd keep his distance - as he usually did.

A digit prodded into his side and Depthcharge glanced over to Ironreef, wondering what else he had to say. The silver mech still had a grin plastered on his face and he spoke in a whisper, "You excited?"

"About this new recruit? Not really," Depthcharge answered casually, rolling his shoulders. But in reality, Depthcharge was actually rather excited. They had managed to get through half a stellar cycle and suddenly there was a new student. There must be a reason why. Depthcharge wanted to find out what it was exactly.

"You're lying to me, fishboy. I know you're screaming with anticipation on the inside"

"Shut up," Depthcharge grumbled, folding his arms as he turned away to look out the window. The two kids had come back out now and were back to playing catch with the ball. A sigh left him. One day he'd be protecting them once he got out of here. Then there would be no fence to separate the two.

*

Using the utensil to scrape the iron fillings around the plate, Depthcharge found himself locked in his own thoughts, ignoring the rest of his friends who were engaged in a conversation which he hadn't found much interest in. His own processor was too busy wrapping around the idea that a new femme was joining. Sure, he was excited like every other student who had heard the news, but a part of him knew it was just another challenge that he'd have to pass.

The mech already had too many bots who were progressing well in their studies - bots who showed skills much greater than his own. It was rather frustrating. Depthcharge aimed high and he wanted to make sure he was the best of the best. Another recruit would just mean another challenger.

A servo brushed his shoulder pad and Depthcharge was shaken from his thoughts. He twisted in the long chair to look at the femme behind him. Another friend of his, who he had known through Ironreef, and named Breeze. Unlike him and Ironreef who were built for water, Breeze was created specifically for flight. She was the smallest of the friend group, which was a total of 5, with the build of a seeker. Painted in light blue and white, Breeze had narrow, blue optics that were rather stunning in colour, described perfectly as a clear sky.

She, herself, was thought to be rather pretty by many.

Her servo was gentle as she tightened it on his shoulder. It was also rather evident to Depthcharge that she seemed to fancy him. He was flattered, but Depthcharge did not return those certain feelings. They were far too young and Depthcharge would rather spend his time training, studying and not chasing after femmes who could potentially leave him when they grew up. 

Breeze smiled, a flicker of concern in her optics, as she asked, "You okay, Depthcharge?"

"You're not the first person who has asked me that," Depthcharge replied, trying not to sound irritated. His mind may wander at times and he might look like he's looking off to space, but that did not mean he was upset. Depthcharge turned away as she moved to sit down by Ironreef. Depthcharge added, "I was just thinking"

"You? Thinking? This day is getting weirder and weirder," Ironreef chuckled, a smirk played on his mouth as Depthcharge merely glared at the mech. A femme who sat on the other side of him slapped his arm, giving him a harsh look as Ironreef looked at her with surprise.

"You sound like an idiot, Ironreef," the femme said, who was painted in red and black. Her face was rounder than Breeze's with narrower, golden optics. She was the complete opposite of Breeze. She was taller, more built and seemed to radiate an intense aura around herself. The femme was called Ember. Ember was neither a flyer or a diver, she was built for the ground with 4 wheels. 

She had a tough attitude which Depthcharge liked. From what he knew or heard, Ember had been bullied as a sparkling by flyers for being a ground vehicle. This built a tough personality inside her. Depthcharge wasn't quite sure if it was all an act. 

"Ember is right, Ironreef. Knock it off, will you?" one of the mechs who had been reading a datapad spoke up. His green optics glanced over to Ironreef as warning. Blast was painted mostly in black with strips of white. Similarly to Ember, he was built for the road, except as a tank. He had one solid cannon attached to his right arm. 

Blast was a quiet mech who kept to himself. He spoke when he wanted to and when he did, it was usually a sassy remark of some kind. Out of the 4 of his friends, Blast was probably the bot that Depthcharge spoke to the least. 

Ironreef threw his hands in the air as surrender, then smirked, "I get it. Everyone is just freaked out that a new femme is gonna join"

"That poor femme. She'll be the centre of attention for the next 2 days," Breeze muttered, already feeling sympathetic despite not even knowing the femme. When Depthcharge first met Breeze, he had been surprised. She had a spark of gold and always put everyone's needs above her own. He often wondered why she had enlisted into the military. Breeze didn't seem like she could harm anything - no matter how ugly it was - whether it be out of her kindness or her shyness.

"She might not even care about the attention," Depthcharge countered, placing the utensil on the table as he found himself losing any appetite he once had. Breeze looked at him, before sighing, and going back to eating. 

"Bets that she's a diver like me and Depthcharge"

"Shut up, Ironreef. She'll be joining me and Blast," Ember snapped at him. Ironreef lifted an optical ridge, grinning, as he jabbed a fork in her direction.

"Divers are like rare. They probably recruited her because we're running low," Ironreef said. Ember rolled her optics at him, finding his argument unbelievable. Though, Depthcharge found there was a bit of truth to his statement. He leaned on his servo, watching as Breeze joined in.

"I'd like a flyer. None of you are flyers and Solarwind is always busy doing secret, important missions with the other top students," she replied quietly. Solarwind was the second bot that Depthcharge had made friends with. He was extremely outgoing, with a bubble of friendliness and cheerfulness. Depthcharge felt like he could trust Solarwind immensely. Solarwind was those type of bots who always had your back.

At this current moment, Solarwind was out doing a secret mission that Breeze spoke of. Solarwind was a top student, who was assigned specific missions. He never spoke of them to Depthcharge and the others. Ironreef and Ember believed it was some shady business. Depthcharge had scoffed at that.

"Watch you all be wrong and she's neither," Blast muttered, still eyeing the datapad in his servo. He spent most of his time reading or studying. 

"You reckon she's a freak?" Ironreef asked, looking at Blast. Blast shrugged, no longer interested in adding anything else. 

"Don't say that, Ironreef! That's a horrible thing to say," Breeze protested, glaring at Ironreef, though it didn't look intimidating at all. It reminded Depthcharge of a sparkling trying to get what it wanted.

"You can argue about it all you want but it's not going to change anything. She could be anything. Might be an ex-predacon for all we know," Depthcharge added in and the rest of them sighed, finding truth in that. Ironreef nodded, the smirk flying off his face.

"We'll just see when the time comes"

*

Much like the morning lesson, Depthcharge found himself becoming increasingly bored with the topic which was equipping their kit, polishing their own armour and preparing uniform. It was basic stuff which Depthcharge had no interest in paying attention to. Sadly, Depthcharge was not seated by the window so he couldn't look to the outside world. Instead, he was sat at the back, in the second row to the windows. Ember and Breeze accompanied him in this lesson: Ember seated in front of him whilst Breeze sat to his right.

Ember seemed to be paying attention with her back straight and pleasantly showing no signs of boredom. Depthcharge glanced to his right to see Breeze looking at the coach, only to make optic contact with him and give him a small wave. A tiny, smile played on her lips and Depthcharge found himself waving back casually. He turned away from her before they were caught.

Tiredly, his optics glanced to the armour pieces that sat on the desk in front of the instructor. Shouldn't the new recruit be coming in now? It was last period and apparently, she was supposed to be joining this class specifically. Well, that's what he had heard from Ironreef anyway.

A knock came to the door and the coach went silent. The rest of the class had their helms turned to the door, anticipating what was behind it. They all knew. They all hoped it would be what they had heard.

"Now! I know you've all heard about this new bot joining our ranks. I'm warning you all that bullying and teasing will not be tolerated," the instructor said as a flash of unease rippled across her optics. Depthcharge sat up straighter, suddenly interested. She clasped her servos together, sighing, "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am," came from every single bot in the class. The instructor nodded, closing her optics before she left the room and closed the door behind him. Whispers and mumbles erupted from the bots as they gathered in small groups. Depthcharge felt his shoulders bunch up with tension and he felt Breeze lightly tap him on his shoulder. He glanced to her questioningly.

"So she's actually joining today. I hope she fits in well," Breeze muttered, her digits twisting with each other which showed she was obviously nervous. Her optics glanced up to Depthcharge's red ones and he suddenly got the feeling that wasn't the only thing she was worried about. 

"Well don't hope too much. Like Ironreef said, she could be an absolute freak," Ember hissed in front of him. She had turned to look at them both but had quickly turned in her seat to plant her peds on the desk and lean back in the chair. Depthcharge had noticed she was rather similar to Ironreef, both had very blunt, large personalities. Though, it wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

He felt a flicker of annoyance at the 4-wheelers words, "Watch what you say, Ember. They might be bigger, tougher than you"

Ember twisted in her seat to glare at him, obviously vexed by his statement. Depthcharge glared straight back. They may be friends but he wouldn't hold back his words. She snapped, "I don't care. They can be the meanest bot ever. They could be Megatron and I still wouldn't care"

"That attitude gets you nowhere, Ember," Breeze sighed, shaking her head. 

"Yeah? Well-"

Ember was cut off by the door sliding open and she immediately swirled back around, taking her peds off of the desk. Everything had gone silent now and everyone eyed the doorway. The instructor came forward, much to their disappointment. However, when a small, white figure appeared from behind her, you could practically feel the excitement in the air. 

When the new recruit was fully revealed, a small gasp left someone and Depthcharge felt his optics widen ever so slightly. She was small, not as small as Breeze, but that wasn't what bothered him. She was young, at least 2 stellar-cycles younger than himself. She was closer to a sparkling than she was to being a fully-grown bot. 

The femme was painted in a beautiful colour of white with the golden and red accents. Wings stretched from her back which made it obvious that she was a flyer. At first glance, as humans would say, she could be described as angelic. Her optics were a bright shade of gold, but if you observed closer then you could see they were far from innocent and Depthcharge felt a void of emotion from her. She moved without feeling; the recruit didn't seem to act like any other bot he had met.

"Would you like to introduce yourself?" the coach asked, staring at her as if she was unsure what to say, which was rather unusual for a teacher of the military.

The femme suddenly saluted, "Eclipse. I'll be acting as your comrade for now"

A foreign wave rippled through the class and Depthcharge felt his spark coil with uncertainty at the gesture and words she had uttered just then. She had acted as if she was a mere soldier saluting her commander. It was unsettling to say the least, especially a bot who was as young as her.

"You may sit down, Eclipse"

She turned to the coach, keeping her salute solid and her feet pointed outwards as if she was being serious. The femme declared, as if it was not an act at all, "Yes ma'am"

Even the she, the teacher, had been struck by her strange gestures and attitude. The femme, Eclipse, moved down the rows of seats before planting herself by the window, to the left of Depthcharge. All the bots had watched her move, before turning in their own seats as the coach continued the lesson as if it had never happened.

Depthcharge tried to not make it obvious as he side-glanced her, rather curious of the new recruit. She merely sat up straight, her servos rested on her thighs and an impassive look on her face as she stared directly forward. Depthcharge turned away, not sure what to think of her besides the fact she seemed to act like a legit soldier.

This would be a problem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick Notes: This is a prequel and takes place before the Beast Wars. This takes place during Depthcharge's training and before he becomes a marshal, so he's a teenager around now. I'm not sure of his personality before the main show, so I've kind of blended it with his show personality and what I think he'd be. I think he's kind of an asshole but has good motives.
> 
> We've been introduced to Depthcharge's friends who are my OCs and if you know his backstory, you know what happens to them. 
> 
> If they were in human years:
> 
> Depthcharge - 16 years old.  
> Ironreef - 15 years old.  
> Solarwind - 16 years old.  
> Blast - 15 years old.  
> Ember - 16 years old.  
> Breeze - 15 years old.  
> Eclipse - 14 years old.


	3. Similarities

Two flyers, a mech and a femme, stood facing each other in the reception of the building. A sparkling nestled within the arms of the mech, curled in a ball and shivering after spending her time in the rain without warmth. He brought her closer to his chassis; his optics held the same concern and dismay that he had felt when he first saw her. His gaze quickly went upwards to meet the femmes, changing into a defensive, agitated aura - like a light switch being turned on.

She kept his solid gaze, her optics narrowed at his attitude towards her. The femme wouldn't hold any of this against him though, she had known him too long for a sparkling to come between the two of them. She leaned back, folded her arms, and huffed with a glance to the sparkling, "I don't know what you're thinking Vigour, but you can't keep a sparkling"

The mech, known as Vigour, scowled at her, not liking her patronising tone that she had used on him. Vigour knew that he outranked. He was a brigadier whilst she was only a colonel. They were both senior ranks, serving long and hard in the military, and they had fought side by side on too many occasions. That didn't mean they didn't argue every now and again. He snapped back, though rapidly quieting himself when he remembered the child in his arms, "And you think I should have left her out in the cold? I won't see a child left in the rain, especially when they are alone"

"You're being an idiot, Vigour," she snapped, pointing at the sparkling and opened her mouth, but before she could say anything he quickly retaliated.

"Using playground names now? Come on, Astralstar. You're better than this," the general argued, his scowl only deepening. He was a tall mech, well-built and it was rather clear that he was built for battle. He was coloured a dark purple with accents of gold. His optics were narrow, coloured a light grey. It was quite obvious that he had seen his share of battle with the natural expression on his face.

Astralstar was a smaller bot, but not as small as usual femmes. She would have been rather pretty if it weren't for the ugly scar that travelled from the bottom of her chin to the top of her helm. No one, besides Vigour and herself, knew why she hadn't had it cleared. The femme was painted black alongside dark blue and white. Her optics were a deep green, which were rather attractive and entrancing.

She sighed, tired of the argument already even though it hadn't lasted that long, "What? You plan on adopting her? You're a general, Vigour. You can't just-"

"-So what if I adopt her?"

Astralstar frowned, shaking her head, "Her creators might be looking for her. Are you sure she was alone?"

"Of course she was!" Vigour snarled. He would have yelled at her if not for the child that had settled itself and remained quiet. His spark hummed in its chamber delightfully when he glanced down to her. His friend's concern was right. Vigour couldn't be distracted by things such as this. He had to stay focused and put the military before anything. He, too, sighed, "I'm not going to adopt her. We have to look for her creators before anything. I'll have some troops look into it and see if they can find them"

"And if they don't find them?"

"I'll think of something"

*

How similar things were now.

Eclipse made her way down the row of seats, keeping her gaze upwards to not meet the eyes of the students around her. She found herself at the back of the room beside the window. She placed herself neatly and immediately began to watch as the trainer began to explain the importance of preparing uniform.

Her servos moved to be placed gently on the desk; her back straight as she maintained a position of awareness. Eclipse was also rather aware of the mech just to the side of her who would glance every now and again as if he had never seen anything like her before. His red optics would move to observe her as if she was the map on the table, ready for the next coordinates to be placed.

She was tempted to meet his gaze, question if there was something that he needed. But, Eclipse recalled the orders that were explicitly given to her by the general. One of them was to "not cause trouble" and if she decided to break that order by questioning the mech and disrupting the class, then Eclipse was sure that it would cause her commander to be disappointed.

Her digits tensed up, creaking upwards ever so slightly, as she thought of it. Disobeying her orders would be the last thing she wanted. A soldier should never disobey their commander.

The mech still glanced to her every now and again. Eclipse wasn't sure if he was curious, mistrustful or just outright hated her. Eclipse couldn't care though. Look straightforward. Do what was ordered. Complete the mission.

*

"Nothing?"

"No sir," the troop replied, saluting as he answered the general. Vigour observed his expression, trying to figure out if he was lying or not, not that there was any reason for the soldier too. Vigour frowned, shaking his head and finding himself becoming increasingly annoyed. They had spent too long on this. Something had to be done before he went back into the field.

"Tell Astralstar to come back in. You're dismissed," Vigour said, dropping his gaze as he leaned back into the chair. The soldier saluted and left the room without saying anything else.

Tapping his digits on the desk, Vigour tried to wrap his processor around the situation at hand. It was proving to be difficult to understand. From what the troops had gathered from the detectives, the creators had long gone and most likely had left the colony to join another.

They had found no reason why her creators had left. And the child didn't seem willing to speak, so it was unlikely they were going to find out.

The door swung open. Vigour's gaze rose to meet Astralstar's as she moved to stand in front of him. She immediately narrowed her optics, folded her arms and immediately voiced her opinion, "I had a feeling this would happen"

"You've been on my aft about this ever since that child has come through the door. What do you want me to do? Dump her? Let her live without a family? I don't even think she can speak!" Vigour immediately yelled, irked at her statement. Her optics flashed panic and fear; Vigour quickly was shocked and then regretful at how he had reacted. It was awfully rare that he would react in such a way, especially to Astralstar. He lowered his stare, ashamed, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout"

Astralstar moved around the desk and for a moment, Vigour was worried she would slap him. But, she tenderly placed her servo on the back of his and gently asked, "So you're going to raise her?"

"Till we find her creators? Yes. I'll look after her," Vigour replied softly, turning his servo to intertwine his digits with hers. He closed his optics for a moment, accepting his final decision and waiting for her to argue against it. Her digits tightened around his, showing that she was against it.

"Okay. Do you know what you're doing?"

Vigour was surprised at how she had finally supported his motive. Perhaps she had accepted that he wouldn't change his mind. He shook his head to her question, "Not really, no"

"I'll help"

He looked up to her softly, thanking her through his own optics and a smile came to his lips. Astralstar smiled back kindly, even though she didn't understand why he had made this decision. Vigour lifted her servo to press her knuckles against the top of his helm, "Thank you"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very short POV from Eclipse. This will be happening often since most of the story is from Depthcharge's POV in the first half.
> 
> You can hate on Astralstar but her view is understandable. Vigour is more emotional than Astralstar, whilst she is more logical. He wanted to help and raise Eclipse, despite how difficult it would be with his position as a senior military rank. Astralstar sees this and would rather have the kid be handed over to an orphanage. They are basically two sides of the same coin. They're go through hell together but they are very different.
> 
> Completely forgot to add that the parts with Vigour and Astralstar were flashbacks,


End file.
